Vancouver Island?

comoha

comoha

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Jan 12, 2006
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My wife and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary this spring. So as a nice getaway we are going to spend 10 days in Vancouver, in mid-September. Actually 5 days in the city and 5 on Vancouver Island.
I'd like to hear from locals and/or people familiar with Vancouver Island on things that would be interesting to see and do. We will be staying near Port Renfrew. Also, charter fishing: What's biting in
September? Who's a recommended charter outfit I could hire?
What's the weather like?
Great places to eat?
And please, name some great day hikes!

Thanks in advance for your help!
 
 
there are some fantastic natural history museums in Victoria. One even has a totem pole collection.
Victoria is a interesting city, as cities go...
 
Butchart Gardens, absolutely. Good restaurant there, too. Best fish & chips, possibly in the world, is at Barb's on Fisherman's Wharf, down at Victoria Harbour Centre area. Provincial Museum is fabulous. Sam's is a great deli, nearby. (Next to the Soda Shop.) You might also be interested in a whale watching expedition. Enjoy!
 
First of all, Port Renfrew is a superb location to stay if you like the outdoors. The camp site there is incredible, probably one of the coolest ones I have seen on Van Island. Impressive amounts of driftwood in all sizes, free for you to collect and make huge campfires with! Along the west coast in the Port Renfrew Area there are a lot of great hikes. You can walk parts of the West Coast trail / Juan de Fuca trail as dayhikes or even just a few hours in and back. Very much worth it.
Other beautiful forest campsites in the area are China Beach and French Beach, both have access to beautiful beaches, as the name suggests. One of the nicest little towns in my opinion is Sooke, lots to discover around.

I would not bother about Tofino, it used to be a great place but the last time I was there it totally changed into a crowded tourist town without much character left. My opinion though. Nevertheless, Long Beach is nice.

Not so easy to access but very impressive is Cape Scott Park in the far north of the Island. I remember being very impressed when I was there as a child, google some pics to see why!

Most of all, make sure to eat a lot of halibut fish and chips!

Have a great trip!

ll.
 
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Some really great insight folks! Thanks so much.
I booked a day on the water coho fishing. Can hardly wait for that.
Vancouver Island really looks like my kind of place.
 
Fishing trips from Painters lodge are very popular, inside the lodge there are signed photo's from lots of celebrities that have fished there including John Wayne. There is also a free shuttle boat that takes you to Quadra Island, that is also worth a visit.

http://www.painterslodge.com/fishing/

There are lots of great places to hike on the Island, a popular one that offers lots of good hikes is the Juan De Fuca Trail:

http://www.juandefucamarinetrail.com/

This is a short easy trail but also offers amazing views, The Wild Pacific Trail.

http://www.longbeachmaps.com/wildtrail.html

East Sooke Park is one of my favourite nearby places I like to hike.
http://www.crd.bc.ca/parks/eastsooke/

Mount Finlayson at Goldstream Park is also a popular hike and offers some nice views.

Strathcona Park is also awesome.

Cool places to visit.

Sooke Potholes.
Tofino.
Cathedral Grove.
Qualicum Falls.
Butchart Gardens.
Strathcona Hotel.
Parksville ( If you go here then visit the Black Goose Inn for food and a beer, one of my favourites :thumbup:)
 
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I salmon fish and have a question for you Vancouver guys. How do you know if a Coho is wild or a hatchery fish, do they clip a fin?
 
Will the fall colors be turning by mid-September? Or is it a bit later into October?
 
I tend to like the north end of the island a lot more than the southern part. Unfortunately it's been a few years since I was there so I'll leave the attractions to the locals.

Karl Granlund of Granlund Firearms in Campbell River is a great guy. You might stop in his store if you're up that way.

Vancouver (the city) used to be one of my favorite weekend getaways. Now with the exchange rate reversed I just don't go up that way any more. Still, if you're looking for NW tribal art or chinese food it's hard to beat.

If you get down into Seattle let me know and I'll be glad to stand a round.

Fall color kind of depends on how cold it gets and August is usually a long hot month. Late Sept - Oct is normal. Snow in Oct is possible too.
 
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